Record-card.



1). E. HUNTER.

RECORD CARD. APPLICATION FILED SEPT.23, 190a. 7 959 938., 111111911 May31, 1910.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

P A. 1A Flgji. FEAE- \X/IT E5555:

D. E. HUNTER.

REGORD CARD.

APPLI'UA'IION FILED SEPT.23, 1908.

959,93, 111611191 May 31, 1910.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

DAVID E. HUNTER, 0F CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR T0 LIBRARYBUREAU, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

" RECORD-CARD.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 31, 1910.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, DAVID E. HUNTER, a citizen of the United States, andresident of Cambridge, in the county of Middlesex and State ofMassachusetts, have invented new and useful Improvements in Record--Cards, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to record cards, particularly to record cardsprovided with tabs or projections, such as are commonly used in cardindexes, card catalogues, card ledgers and other card record systems.

Its object is to provide a record card having a tab or projection soincased or inclosed in celluloid, or other suitable material adapted toresist wear and moisture, as effectually to protect and reinforce thetabagainst the destructive effects of handling the same. While I believesheet celluloid to be the best material for incasing the card tabs asaforesaid, by reason of its ductility, transparency, flexibility,durability and imperviousness to moisture, I do'not wish to be limitedto such material, since any other material which may be found to beadapted for the purpose is within the scope and contemplation of myinvention. Nevertheless, as celluloid is the best material at presentknown to me, I will address my description to the reinforcing andincasing of'the tabs in celluloid.

In the accompanying drawings which illustrate certain embodiments of myinvention, Figure 1 represents the face of a card containing a tab orprojection incased ,in and protected by celluloid in one manner; Fig.

2 is an edge yiew of the card and tab shown. '-'1n F1 1; Flg. 3 is aplan view in detail of the e ge filler used in the incasement shown inFig. 1; Fig. 4 is a plan view in detail of the face coverings for thetab of the form used in Fig. 1; Fig. 5 represents the face of a cardcontaining a tab or rojection incased in and protected by ce luloid inanother manner; Fig. 6 is an edge view of the card and tab shown inFig.5; Fig. 7 is a plan of the blank used for covering or incasing the tabas shown in Fig. 5; Fig- 8 represents the face of a card containing atab or roj'ection incased in and protected by cellu oid in anothermanner; Hg. 9 is an edge view of the card and tab shown in Fig.

8; Fig. 10 is a plan of the blank used for containing a tab orprojection incased in and protected by celluloid in another manner; Fig.12 is an edge view of the card and tab shown in Fig. 11; Fig. 13 is aplan of the blank used for covering and incasing the tab as shown inFig. 11; Fig. 14 represents the face of a card containing a tab orprojection incased in and protected by celluloid in another manner; Fig.15 is an edge view of the card and tab shown in Fig. 14; Fig. 16 is aplan of the blank used for coverin and incasing the tab shown in Fig.14; Fig. 17 representsthe face of a card containing a tab or projectionincased in and protected by celluloid in another manner; Fig. 18 is anedge view of the card and tab shown in Fig. 17 Fig. 19 is a plan view ofthe blank used for covering and incasing the tab shown in Fig. 17 Fig.20

represents the face of a card containing a tab or projection incased inand protected by celluloid in another manner; Fig. 21 is an edge View ofthe card andtab shown in Fig. 20; Fig. 22 is a plan View of the blankused for covering and incasing the tab shown in Fig. 20; and'Fig. 23 isa perspective view of a method heretofore employed for reinforcing andprotecting the tabs of record cards.

"1 It has hitherto been proposed partially to protect the tabs of paperor pasteboard record cards by means of celluloid which 1s transparentand therefore does not conceal any inscription which may be upon thetab, and this has been practiced in the manner illustrated in Fig. 28.According to this method a rectangular sheet of celluloid a. is

folded over the edge of a straight edged card aand cemented thereto, andthereafter, by suitable instruments, parts of the upper edge of the cardand the corners of the attached celluloid sheet are cut away as shown ata leavin the tab 6 projecting from card a, and covere along its top edgeand faces by the celluloid covering, but leaving the s1de edges of thetab 6 unprotected and exposed as shown at y and 2. While this form ofprotection for the tab may be better than none,

it has proved unsatisfactory and is open to many objections. In themanlpulation of tab cards of this sort in a card record system, it isfound that more wear comes upon the tabs at the corners and side ed e'sthan at the top edge. Moisture from the ands of the user, or from theatmosphere, coming in contact with the exposed side edges of thecardboard tab 1), together with constant wear thereon and at the cornersof the tab, tends to cause the cardboard to swell, and the cardboard andcelluloid to separate along the exposed edges 3 and a, and eventuallycauses the celluloid sheet to crack at the fold along the top edge ofthe tab, thus destroying the covering and eventually the tab itself.Fur-' thermore, with the above described method of cutting out the tabafter 'the celluloid has been applied, it has been found that the cuttertends to separate the celluloid from the card during the process ofcutting with the result that the protective covering of the tab is in acondition more quickly to break down under the stress of wear. It is toovercome the defects of such devices as the above that my invention isdesigned.

In carrying out my invention, I provide a protected tab whose edge iswholly incased in celluloid or some other suitable material so that nopart of the pasteboard or paper tab, and particularly no part oftheyedge thereof, is exposed to the effects of wear and moisture, butthe same is wholly incased and sealed within said protective covering,thus rendering the tab proper to all intents and purposesindestructible.

Referring to Figs. 1 to 4 inclusive of the drawings, a represents arecord card having at one edge thereof a tab or projection b. At eachface of the tab 1) is secured a sheet of celluloid d conforming ingeneral shape with the contour of the tab but projecting slightly beyondthe edge thereof as shown in Fig. 1. Between the projecting ed es of thepieces d, and covering the edge 0 the tab b,'is inserted a piece ofcelluloid 0 cut from a sheet of the same thickness as the card a. Theparts thus assembled are cemented by amyl acetate or alcohol or othersuitable cement and constitute a casing or covering for the tab Z)wholly incasing and sealing the same against the efiects of wear andmoisture.

Referring to Figs. 5, 6 and 7, the card a is shown having the tab 6 ofcurved form, and the coverin e is made from a blank consisting of a atrectangular sheet of celluloid as shown in Fig. 7 I have discovered thatsheet celluloid is fairly ductile, especially in the presence of heat,and the blank 6 may be folded and drawn without puckering or creasinginto conformation with the shape of the tab 1), thus wholly incasing andsealing the edge thereof as shown in Figs. 5 and 6.

Referrin to Figs. 8, 9 and 10, the tab 6 on the car a is shown assimilar in form to the tab in Figs. 5 and .6, and the sheet cellueeaesaloid blank is out in ovoid shape as shown in Fig. 10 and folded anddrawn into conformation with the shape of the tab 6 incasing boththeedges and the entire surface of the faces of the tab as shown in Figs. 8and 9.

Referring to Figs. 1-1, 12 and 13', a tab 6 is shown having a straighttop edge and ogee curve side edges, and the sheet celluloid blank forincasing the same consists of a body portion 9 having two wings, adaptedto be folded over the top edge of the tab with the wings overlying theopposed faces of the tab, and having at each end a tail piece 71.

' edges of the wings of the blank g are cut on curved lines to abutagainst the edges of the tail pieces when the blank is applied to thecard as shown in Fig. 14, thus wholly covering and sealing not only theedges of the tab but the faces thereof by the celluloid incasement.

In Figs. 17 18 and 19 is shown a further modification wherein thecelluloid blank is similar to that shown in Fig. 13, but the side edgesof the tab are formed on a different curve from that shown in Figs. 11and 14, the article being otherwise made in the same manner as alreadydescribed; and in case it should be desired to close the spaces betweenthe lateral edges of the wings and the edges of the tail pieces h, thedevice shown in Figs. 20, 21 and 22 is used wherein the blank g has sidewings whose lateral edges are curved to conform with the general shapeof the tab 6 of Fig. 20, so that when the parts are assembled the edgesof the wings will abut against the edges of the tail pieces as shown inFig. 20, thus wholly incafiing the faces as well as the edges of the taIn all of the above forms the celluloid incasement may be secured to thecard by amyl or cast. Inasmuch as sheet celluloid is suf- 'ficientlyductile for the purpose, I believe that the best mode of formin blankssuch as shown in Figs. 5 to 22 incluslve, is to draw them into thedesired shape, using heat if necessary, by means of dies.

Other forms of tabs, and other forms of blanks, and other materials thancelluloid may be used, and I do not desire to be limincident to handlinsince my invention in its broader aspects contemplates the use of anyform of protect ive covering of suitable material which wholly incasesand protects. the vulnerable ed es ofthe tabs at all points, so thatthey Wi 1 not be effected by the Wear and moisture While this is wellaccomplished by the orm of protective covering illustrated in Figs. 1 to4 inclusive, which affords a protective covering wholly incasing thetabs, the forms illustrated in the other figures are believed to bepreferable, for the reason that not only dothey wholly incase and sealthe edges of the tab, but this is accomplished by a seamlessreinforcement which prevents all possibility of the separation of thetwo sides of the protective covering bywear at the edges of the tab,which separation might, to some extent, result with the use of the formshown in Figs. 1 to 4 inclusive, wherein there are seams between theseveral layers of the celluloid ineasement.

I claim: 1. As a new article of manufacture, a record card provided witha tab or projection, the edges of said tab or projection being whollyincased in and protected by a transparent material adapted to resistwear. 2. As a new article of manufacture, .a record card provided with atab or projection, the edges of said tab or projection beingd whollyincased in and protected by cellu- 3. As a new article of manufacture, a

- record card provided with a tab or projecits sides and at its e tion,the edges of said tab or projection being wholly incased in andprotected by a seamless covering of a transparent material adapted toresist wear, shaped to conform with the contour of the tabor-projection.

. 4. As a new article of manufacture, a. record card provided with a tabor tion, the edges of said tab or projection beingwholly incasedjn andprotected by a seamless sheet of celluloid sha ed to) conform with thecontour of the ta or projection.

5. As a new article of manufacture a record card provided with a tab orprojection, said tab or projection being both at its sides and at itsedges incased 1n and retected by a transparent material adapte to resistwear.

6. As a new article of manufacture, a record card provided with a tab orprojec-' tion, said tab or projection being both at its sides and at itsedges incased 1n and protected by celluloid.

"7. As a new article of manufacture, a record card provided with a tabor rejection, said tab or projection being hot at gas incased in andprotected by a sheet of celluloid shaped over rojecsaid tab orprojection and conforming with the contour thereof.

8. As a new article of manufacture, a record card provided with a tab orprojection, the edge of said tab or projection being covered andprotected by a sheet of celluloid drawn into a shape to embrace .andconform with the edge of the tab.

9. As a new article of manufacture, a record card of cardboard or paperprovided with an integral tab or projection, said tab or projectionbeing both at its sides and at its edges wholly incased in and protectedby sheet celluloid, whereby no part of said cardboard or paper tab isexposed to wear.

10. As a new article of manufacture, a record card having a tab orprojection, said tab or projection provided with a protective coveringcomprising a body portion having a pair of side wings covering the topedge and overlying the faces of the tab, and a pair of tail piecesembracing and'covering the side edges of the tab.

11. As a new article of manufacture, a record card having a tab orprojection, said tab orsprojection provided with a protective coveringof sheet celluloid comprising a body portion having a pair of side wingscoverin the top edge and overlying the faces 0 the tab, and a pair oftail pieces embracing and coveringthe side edges of the tab.

12. As a new article of manufacture, a record card having a tab orprojection, said tab or projection provided wlth a protective coveringof sheet. celluloid comprising a body portion having a pair of sidewlngs coverin the top edge and overlying the faces 0 the tab, and a pairof tail pieces embracing and covering the side edges of the tab, thelateral edges of the side wings being so fashioned as toabut against thesides of the tail pieces ed e to edge, thus wholly covering the faces ofthe tab.

. inclosing the edge, ends and face 0 the tab.

, 14. As a new article of manufacture, a record card provided with anintegral tab or projection, a sheet of transparent waterroof materialfolded over the tab or fprojection, inclosing the opposite sur acesthereof, such fo (1 inclosing both the top edge and end edges of the tabso as to prevent the admission of moisture to the edges of the tab orbetween the edges of the tab and the sheet.

Signed by me at Boston, Massachusetts, this eighth day of September,1908.

DAVID E. HUNTER.

Witnesses:

FLORENCE A. COLLINS, Roma CUBHMAN.

